Next chapter 2 hours.
Year 7445, Month 7, Day 25
While I started walking off, I don"t want to hurry too much. It"s a plan made on the spot so I want to think if there"s any rough ends remaining. But, it"s also a fact that there"s no time. After I started walking without even advancing 50 meters a group of ogres got caught in my {Detect.Life}. After all it seems we caught their attention from the sounds of combat over here. With a few seconds between I used {Detect.Life} once more. It feels like they"re slowly and carefully moving from the center of the room to the direction we are located (going clockwise the direction of 12-1).
I clench my fist and after raising my left hand I raised everyone"s caution. I quickly opened my left hand and after shaping it like an O I waved it from front to back. It"s a signal for the {Slaughterers} that "the opponent is approaching us". Since it"s not my right hand it also signifies that we can"t seem them yet as well. The three suckers have no idea what"s going on I"m sure but it"s fine as long as the fact that something is happening is conveyed.
Ah, s.h.i.t. I want to properly have a meeting and go over a plan but there"s no time to be taking it easy and I don"t want to cause an unneeded misunderstanding with the three suckers of {Sun.Ray} as well. Even if I just talk about a genuine versus ogre plan it would be troublesome if they misunderstand. Since idiots believe in whatever they want to believe. The three suckers should understand the series of events they saw but I don"t want that to give the other members a strange impression when they hear about it later.
In reality I"d prefer to hide around here and aim to ambush the ogres when they approach but this time things won"t go so easily. We slowly advance and close the distance. I want to advance another 50 meters before they notice us. I tried using {Detect.Life}. They"re still 180 meters or so away. I raised the speed of advance and moved another 30 meters ahead. I tried using {Detect.Life} again. The distance should have already cut 140 meters. If we advance another 30 meters ahead then they might notice us before we can hide.
It can"t be helped so after advancing another 20 meters I hit in a thicket of bushes that was in just the right place and gave everyone else the order to hide as well. When I turned around it was just as the three suckers tried to hurry and hide behind some nearby bushes and trees after seeing the {Slaughterers} movements.
I tried looking in the direction the ogres were approaching from with Identify vision but there"s too many things in the way so I can"t get a look at them. I"d like to at least confirm the number of ogre mages. You can"t tell the difference between ogres and ogre mages from just looking. Only when you check their status or otherwise use Identify can you determine they"re ogre mages from their magic special skills.
It"s probably impossible for them to not notice us before I can get a glimpse of them~ In that case, it should either be one of the ones in the center of the group or near the rear, or at least I can only make that sort of indefinite judgement. If I can at least see them giving out some sort of order then I would be able to guess that"s the ogre mage but there"s no time to be leisurely waiting around I"m sure.
My aim among the already largely reduced options is for the main group of {Sun.Ray} to somehow end up in a melee and suffer serious injuries that won"t be fatal. Hopefully multiple people, if possible including the Rindobel couple, and ideally everyone. Ah, it doesn"t particularly matter if the three suckers end up injured or not. And, then I"ll have the Rindobel couple do a triage. There"s already no other option than that. For that sake I need to at least start things out a bit flashy in order to get closer to the original plan and tell them that combat has started.
I can"t properly convey my will to the other members of the {Slaughterers} but they should already understand the original plan has failed. I"m sure Angela and Basutoral won"t say anything unnecessary unless I give some sort of order. I can relax in regards to Gwine as well. The problem is Ralpha but since I just kicked her in the a.s.s a short while ago she"ll probably remain quiet for the time being. She will right? If she doesn"t then as a punishment I"ll force her to kill all of the members of {Sun.Ray} before things become even more troublesome. If it comes to that then the reincarnated people won"t be swayed to my side anymore though. Additionally we"d have to ambush the second party of {Sun.Ray} on the 3rd floor and finish them all off including Faruergaz and the others.
Ah, after all I think I would have been able to relax more if I had left Ralpha and brought along Bel. From an unexpected negligence (though I feel saying that is harsh) they were ambushed by ogres and starting with Zenom and Toris, Miduchi, Zulu, they were all done in so there was no s.h.i.t or anything about a plan anymore. I"m sure I"m under shock as well and above all else it hurts that I didn"t have any other option than to leave Bel for healing.
I order everyone to remain on standby there while quietly sticking my head out from the bushes. I looked in the direction of the center of the room but after all I can"t see any ogres. I use {Detect.Life} again and they"re about to cut the 100 meter point in distance. It wouldn"t be strange if they noticed anytime now. Since they"ll notice even if we just ignore them, it"s a higher priority to close the distance even just a bit more and make sure the distance between the ogres and the main group of {Sun.Ray} is closer.
I give everyone the order to charge and run off all at once. I guess my head has already cooled down, unlike before I can see the trees clearly.
...............
There.
After dashing close to 70 meters all at once and I discovered the group of ogres about 30 meters ahead. It"s only obvious but they"ve already noticed me as well. I jumped over the bushes landing and at the same time I looked as far as I could see behind the ogres and used the spell {Audible Clamor} to make it seem like someone was running through the bushes. Of course the sound won"t reach my ears but I"m sure the ogre mages would notice it. Simultaneously I used the spell {Flame Arbalest Missile} aiming at the ogre around the center.
The one that turns around or reacts should be the ogre mage.
It seems the one I aimed at was the ogre mage. The instant it noticed my {Flame Arbalest (Missile)} it imprudently hid behind the back of a nearby ogre. If I put some effort into it then it"s not as if I can"t still hit but putting aside a slight change in the trajectory, if I shift the trajectory of it in a showy way then I won"t be able to claim it"s {Flame Arbalest} anymore. Since the flaming spear stands out, there"s a high chance the three suckers can already see it.
Since it can"t be helped I just let it continue forward and shot through the face of the ogre used as a shield.
Also, it seems that a different ogre mage form the one I aimed at turned around and pointed from behind several ogres. I"m sure the ogres can"t determine if we"re the decoy or the main group but they"ll come to attack with a reasonable number. If it"s the level of being vigilant for ambushes from behind then it"s only obvious for ogre mages.
It seems I can manage one more shot.
I aim at a different ogre with it"s club in hand running over here and sent one more shot of {Flame Arbalest Missile} flying. However, the true aim of this one was the ogre mage(probably) that is behind it and seems to have stopped moving to concentrate and use magic. The flaming spear moves in a slight arc to pa.s.s by the side of the ogre while I take out my sword and move to make sure I don"t lose line of sight, it continues flying towards the individual that seems to be an ogre mage and beautifully hit it in the chest. It probably won"t instantly kill it but I think I sealed it"s magic and I"m sure it won"t be able to move much either way. But, if I stand out this much them then there"s no way the ogres that were paying attention over here should set anyone other than me as their first objective.
"Aa!!"
"It missed.."
"Che!!"
I heard those sorts of voices from behind when my flaming spear pa.s.sed by the side of the ogre that was coming towards me but soon after,
"Ooh!!?"
"Amazing!!"
"I thought that was the case."
and their voices changed to that. They sure in good condition, the three suckers.
Angela runs past my right side and silently charged at the ogre that was coming towards me. On the opposite side Ralpha advances while keeping her body low and when she pa.s.sed in front of me she took up a position to cover Angela"s blind spots. I advance to about five meters behind Angela on the left side as well and slow down the following two ogres that came charging. Since I went through the trouble of standing out I need to make sure to stay near the front where I"m easy to target. I need to take my time and drag things out here. The spectacle I got a glimpse of through the gaps in the ogres was one or two ogre mages behind the three ogres in the front looking carefully to their rear.
There"s nine ogres remaining capable of combat. It seems they"re sending half of those to the rear and half over here. And, while I say that after all the ones dealing with things first is the ogres and the ogre mages are still standing in the center giving out orders intending to back them up with magic.
Since I"m standing at the front taking on two of them alone, it must have thought I would be easier to deal with so another ogre came along. But, it must have seen that Basutoral and Gwine were fortified right behind me or were being careful because it moved to take a detour in a different direction.
"We"ll hold that one done!"
I heard Rokko"s voice. At the same time I felt their footsteps move from behind me to the left side.
"Don"t try to do anything unreasonable!"
Just in case I called out to them but since I was focused over there and one of the ones in front had an opening, I couldn"t help but reflexively hit with a serious attack while evading it"s club. I ended up cutting deeply from it"s left side up through it"s right breast. I avoid the ogre that let out a showy scream and started rolling around as it holds the wound, a~~a, and regretted what I did.
"Oo!! As expected! Everyone, follow after me!!"
"O!"
"Even I can!"
The three suckers were facing off against the ogre that tried to take a detour around the left side. Putting that aside, since there"s only one ogre remaining in front of me, it"s true that I"ve regained quite a bit of leeway. I carefully maintain the distance between the ogre, since Gwine and Basutoral are keeping it in check, I used the spell {Audible Clamor} again to cause a sound to appear in the far distance. At the same time I threw a throwing needle at the ogre the three suckers were facing off against. I"m sure it won"t be very effective but it"s better than nothing.
The ogre mage reacted immediately and while scolding it"s subordinate I could tell it sent some over there. At the same time I noticed that one of the ogre mages started concentrating. I wonder if I should seriously injure it and completely seal it"s magic? No, there"s still another hand I can play. I immediately went around the side of the ogre in front of me and jumped out to a point that stands out. A stone spear came flying at me at almost the same time. The timing is important.
"Waa!!"
I swing my sword and pretend as if I"m cutting from below while creating a small {Anti-Magic Field} the size of my palm and received the stone spear with that erasing it. Since everyone is in the middle of combat it was already in my prediction that no one could see anything more than me cutting away at it in the middle of the air with a divine level of sword technique. Since fall of last year, when we"re training incantations in the dungeon I practiced it together with Miduchi.
I thought I would hear voices of admiration from everyone but that wasn"t the case. Gwine and Basutoral are still busy trying to keep the energetic ogre in check to follow me up while I"m doing meaningless things and it seems Angela has landed a number of attacks but none of them are fatal blows and the ogre is still plenty energetic so she"s not in a situation where she can look elsewhere. Ralpha has her back facing me and is supporting Angela. The three suckers are frantically trying to take on one ogre and already no longer paying attention to my actions.
"Gioo~ooU!!"
Seeing it"s magic erase only the ogre mage raised a voice of resentment while glaring hatefully at me. So you"re the only one huh, that recognizes my worth...But, ogre mages have considerably good heads. I"m sure it"ll notice right away.
"Keep at it!!"
I left those words while cutting the back of the left knee of the remaining ogre and at the same time as it fell to one leg and glared at me I charged towards the ogre mage. Ah, judging from Angela and Ralpha"s state they should be able to keep that up forever. Since Gwine and Basutoral are using spears against an ogre that can"t use one of it"s legs they should be alright as well. No one cares about the three suckers. Since there"s three of them I"m sure they"ll manage somehow. If one of them were to be seriously injured, I"m sure Gwine and Basutoral would finish things up right away and go to heal them.
Since it"s realized that using magic is pointless against me, it went to aim at someone else but it was necessary for me to approach it to seal that.
Ahead of me a flaming spear came flying and was evaded by one of the ogres that went to the rear.
It seems they finally arrived.
"Guge~ouo~gyaru!!"
"Gu? Gu!!"
It seems the ogre mage gave out some kind of order and I heard the sound of ogres running off to the rear. At the same time the ogre mage that ordered it moved to follow behind them. The direction I was heading has one ogre mage standing on guard with a club glaring hatefully at me, one that seems to be an ogre mage that I hit in the chest with the flame spear still screaming, and the corpse of the first ogre that I killed that was used as a shield.
Idi~ot, as if something at your level could fire off a spell that fast.
I smiled seeing the ogre mage that tried to start concentrating but gave up right away.
It tries to use the club in it"s hand to attack me as I approach running along.
I roll to avoid the wide swing and circled around behind it while cutting it"s right knee.
"We"ve already defeated three of them. We"re taking on four right now! Four of them are heading that way!"
Just in case I shouted in a loud voice warning them.
"Ah!"
This voice is probably Koritto. It took the shape of an a.s.sault but the four ogres that went towards the main group of {Sun.Ray} are just the quota I had mentioned at the start, or rather I"ve already taken responsibility for the things I said. If they can hold out for around 30 seconds after hostilities start then it should be about a good time.
I leisurely avoid the club the ogre mage is swinging on one leg and lightly cut it"s arm. At the same time I used the spell {Air Hammer} right in front of the ogre smashing it and while it was flinching with it"s eyes closed I stabbed my sword into it"s right chest. I quickly jumped back and after finding another opening cut at it. It seems that the Ogre Mage that took my {Flame Arbalest Missile} to the chest is still alive but considerably weakened and already on the verge of death. It"s just for a short while but I can relax and fight here.
I glanced back in the direction I came from and it was just as Ralpha jumped to swing her axe down on the right shoulder of an ogre. After taking an attack from the axe the wound almost seemed to burst open sending blood flying in the surroundings. Gwine and Basutoral are fighting safely as well. I"m sure they could already finish it off at anytime if they want. It seems that the three suckers have wounded the ogre somewhat and they"re all still moving energetically.
"Gobu!!"
""Haruku!!!""
""Haruku-san!!""
"It..It"s no good. Hi, retreat!!"
""No way!!?""
Oh my~ are you really going to retreat abandoning your wounded allies so easily? That"s unexpectedly cruel. But, it"s also a good strong decision to avoid being wiped out as well. However, for Harukein.Fumizu to be the first one taken out. I did wonder how a battle mace with a reasonably short reach would do against ogres but I guess first off was you huh? Since he can use the shield skillfully I thought he would hold out a bit longer.
But, his voice was quite small. I wonder if they"re a considerable distance away?
"Kamu, come back! We"re retreating!!"
Meiria"s reprimanding voice echoes out.
"But!"
"Agu!!"
"Meri!!!"
""Meri-san!!!""
"s.h.i.t!! It can"t be helped, hold out!!"
The two front line members using the long sword and battle mace were injured. Is it about a good time? But, I see that he decided not to retreat anymore the instant his wife was injured. It"s quite self-centered but I guess that"s the nature of people. It"s not worth criticizing them over. Rather than something like that this situation is ideal. I wonder if you could say I"m loved by G.o.d?
"Ha!!"
I let out a small breath while cutting the left upper arm of the ogre mage and while quickly turning around I cut it"s left knee.
"Go~e!!"
With both of it"s knees done in, completely kneeling on the ground the ogre shrunk to about the same height as me.
"Shaa!!"
I quickly thrust my sword into it"s throat and pulled it out. I"m sure my body is already bright red from blood spray.
"Hurry up and finish them off!"
I shouted that behind me and thrust my sword into the heart of the ogre finishing it off. I immediately took off running towards the main group of {Sun.Ray}.
"I"m heading to back you up now!"
I shouted like that while holding my sword up and dashing.
About 100 meters away a blood-stained battle was taking place.
Haruku is collapsed facing the ground, Meiria is leaned over with her back to a tree while holding her side. In the vicinity of that there"s three ogres holding their positions and a bit to the rear is what seems to be an ogre mage yelling gyagya giving out orders.
{Sun.Ray} has completely lost their proper front line with power while Koritto and Kimu are standing at the front line desperately trying to hold the three ogres in check with spears. Misu and Kamu have taken up the role of attackers with magic and bow.
Of course the three ogres aren"t unharmed either but it"s not like they"re using paralysis poison so they"re still in good condition. The ogre mage has started concentrating. I could only confirm Kimu but she"s making an expression close to despair.
"Uooo~!!"
I raise my sword above my head and swung down cutting the ogre mage from behind with all of my power.
"Gyaaa~!!"
A raspy scream overflows from the ogre mages mouth as the concentration for it"s magic is cut off. While it was flinching I cut it down to size and then stabbed through it"s heart from it"s back finishing it off before running to the main group. The ogre on the right suddenly threw the club in it"s hand at Misu in the rear and it ended up hitting her in the stomach when she was aiming with her bow. Koritto thought it was his chance to thrust with his spear but he was blocked by the ogre in the center and it was parried. There the empty-handed ogre on the right lunged forward and grappled with him.
"Gooo~!!"
Koritto raises a battle cry. The Laios skill, Instantaneous huh?
While Koritto was brushing away the club with his spear, the ogre in the center grabbed the spear Kimu thrust forward with it"s left hand. There it was stabbed with an arrow but it"s movements only dulled just a bit and it pulled the spear as if it was nothing at all. The ogre on the left swings down it"s club intending to crush Kimu"s head.
"Kimu!!"
Someone shouted but I"m sure none of them will make it in time anymore.
Excluding me when I use wind magic on my back and fly over in an instant.
"To~!!"
I flew into the ogre on the left body slamming it"s left shoulder shifting the trajectory of the club it was swinging and immediately swing my sword towards the back of the ogre in the center.
"Aa!!"
Even then it seems that the ogre"s club swinging towards Kimu crushed her right arm as it"s bent in a strange direction while Kimu is holding her heavily injured right arm and writhing around on the ground in pain.
It"s alright, you won"t die from just one arm.
"Seah!!"
The ogre that I rammed into was stomping it"s feet without knowing what even happened as I stabbed it through the heart. I quickly kicked off pulling my sword out and moved around keeping the ogre in the center in check while cutting the ogre that Koritto was grappling(!) with. It"s fine if I can just get the ogres to focus on me.
"Ha!!"
I immediately jumped to the side evading the attack from the ogre in the center.
"Fmph!!"
I saw Koritto punching an ogre. Even if you have Instantaneous, attacks with your bare hands won"t do much damage. Rather~ this old man is an idiot. He might just be too agitated and all the blood is rushing to his head. I need to hurry. I cross swords with the ogre in the center as it was swinging it"s club at me, I wonder how much longer it will take to defeat. There"s no time to spend thinking.
"Ri~aaaa!!"
I swing my sword considerably frantically and tore up the arm of the ogre in the center. The ogre"s face twisted in pain and it seems to be cursing something. I calmly evade it"s attacks and swing my sword. I land my attacks one after another and I don"t think it took much time at all before I sliced it"s throat.
I immediately turned to face the ogre on the right but Korrito"s right arm was being held by the ogre"s left arm as he was being hit.
I changed my stand to quickly thrust my sword into the ogre"s side but Ralpha came flying in smashing her {tomahawk} into it"s head killing it instantly.
"The other side?"
"I sent Angela and the others over there. As expected I"m sure they"re already finishing up."
Ralpha replied while swinging her {tomahawk} to get the gray matter stuck to it off.
"Go and take a look."
Ralpha obeyed without showing any sign of complaint and went back. After all it seems she had some thoughts on it as well.
"Misu! It"s already fine! Kimu you calm down as well!"
The only one unharmed Kamu screamed while looking at Misu"s condition.
"Gwa..Hea..healing.."
Koritto looked up at me from the ground while saying with the left side of his face swollen and his right arm that was grabbed bent in an odd direction.
"Why didn"t you come even sooner!"
Weakly but even then firmly Meiria started telling me off.
"I gave it my best but even then I"m sorry for arriving late to back you up."
I crouch down by Haruku"s side and turn him face up while saying.
"There"s four people that need {Cure Critical} as soon as possible. Meiria-san, Haruku-san, Kimu-san, and Misu-san. Who should I use it on? I"ve used a considerable amount of mana in the combat up to here so I"m already at the limit."
It seems Meiria was. .h.i.t with an attack spell. When I used Identify her condition was Stab Wound. That"s unlikely to be from a club. But, while it"s true she"s seriously injured she should be fine even without {Cure Critical} right away. I thought Haruku only took an attack to his waist but it seems his ribs were stepped on after that as well. His condition is Blunt Wound and Organ Rupture. It would be best to use it on him. I"m sure Kimu is in pain but honestly speaking if it"s just one arm then even if we ignore it for a short while it won"t endanger her life. Misu is..in the same condition as Haruku but not as seriously injured as him it seems.
"Mu..I guess that"s true..I guess so, then, Mei"I think that Haruku-san is in more danger!"
When Koritto tried to say something he was interrupted by Kamu"s shout.